Golden Knights hockey complex approved for downtown Henderson

By Justin Emerson

Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2019 | 7:05 p.m.

The Golden Knights are expanding their footprint in the Las Vegas Valley.

The Henderson City Council voted unanimously Tuesday in favor of a proposal for the team to take over the Henderson Convention Center and turn it into a hockey facility. The revamped convention center will hold two NHL-sized rinks, a restaurant and retail space.

“I’m just so thrilled about the possibility of what this can bring to downtown Henderson in terms of engaging families and community and bringing more and more people downtown,” Henderson Mayor Debra March said. “I hope that you will love downtown Henderson as much as we love downtown Henderson.”

The vote creates a 180-day window for the city of Henderson and Black Knight Sports and Entertainment, the team ownership group, to work out details.

The vote continues to build upon the hockey foundation the Golden Knights built when the team arrived. Before the NHL awarded Las Vegas a team in 2016, there were just two ice facilities in the area: Las Vegas Ice Center in the west valley and Sobe Ice Arena in North Las Vegas.

The team built City National Arena in Summerlin as its practice facility and home base. This new Henderson facility will be the first of its kind for people in the south part of town.

“When we got to the playoffs last year, the enthusiasm and energy that was coming from the Henderson community for our team and for our franchise really solidified for our organization (the desire to be in Henderson),” team president Kerry Bubolz said to the council. “We felt that love and certainly that our next step was in Henderson.”

The Golden Knights issued a statement last week, and team representatives said they would not comment further.

"As part of our continued efforts to help grow the great game of hockey in Southern Nevada, we are currently exploring opportunities to build a second community hockey facility in Henderson similar to our home at City National Arena in Summerlin,” the statement read. “The planning and discussions regarding this project are ongoing and are not final at this point. We will provide more information when appropriate and when details are confirmed."